Thread: MN-Nat

If your in MN go next door to Wisconsin and to the Devils lake area. They have Quartzite peculiar to that region alone. Purple stuff. I've always suspected it could make a great medium grit hone. I have a chunk but it's too irregular and small to be of much value as a hone.

I did a search and it looks like it wouldn't be to hard to get a hone size piece. It is not real close but certainly in range.

Thanks, Tim

Originally Posted by 32t

I did a search and it looks like it wouldn't be to hard to get a hone size piece. It is not real close but certainly in range.

Thanks, Tim

Ok, I'll hold the rope, you go up there and get the hones

Cool, I want a MN nat. keep us posted to your tests.

Originally Posted by rodb

Ok, I'll hold the rope, you go up there and get the hones

Just below her left foot and a little to the right looks like a good hone size rectangle!

Nice one! Looks like a Jnat nakayama karasu . I have also find a few weeks ago an extraordinary piece, it's actually marble, but it contains very very fine quartz particles, strange thing. I'll open a thread when I'll be able to lap it to an acceptable degree. Hone hunting is fun.

Today on another walk I found the Glenwood formation!

I had a hard time getting a big enough piece for a hone. I lapped 2. They are very soft and brittle. The larger one you can see I lapped sideways to the layers. The one side has many inclusions. Not good. the smaller one is much more cleaner but still has a few inclusions. That one is crumbling on one end. I don't know if it is from lapping under running water or from it drying out. At least when it is damp I could bevel the edges with my pocket knife. Lapping with sandpaper the clay or silt in it would create a suction between the stone and paper if not enough water used. I haven't used it yet except a few test strokes on my pocket knife but it seems about the coarseness of my 220 norton.

I an going to let them sit around for a while to stabalize. I think the main issue is going to be that they are very fragile. Even if the abrasive qualities are good.

Tim

Good work Tim, those look like great candidates. Is that a soft type of siltstone? I know what you mean when trying to get a big enough piece. I'm waiting for it to get warmer because the bigger pieces are under water. It's been hot the last couple days here for this time of year, I'm getting excited.

This is the siltstone I'll be sending out to ya when I get more. It's pretty hard for siltstone actually. I've gotten shaving edges off it and it seems to cut really well. I had it laying around for awhile because without being cut and lapped it looked really gritty. Let me know how those new stones preform, keep up the good work!

This is what the Devils lake Quartzite looks like from the Baraboo Range.

The Glenwood formation experiment was a bust at least as far as a hone goes. It is way to soft. I did try a slurry from it on my C12kand that was interesting enough for me to try again. I did get in a couple of good walks and more learning!

Tim